Racism. It Stops With Me Campaign

In October 2012 Council signed an agreement with the Australian Human Rights Commission to endorse and support the National Anti-Racism Campaign: RACISM. IT STOPS WITH ME.

This campaign is an initiative of the National Anti- Racism Strategy launched by the Australian Government in August 2012. It aims to address racism experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

The RACISM. IT STOPS WITH ME campaign will be supported through Council activities.

Why?

Research, conducted by Vic Health in 2010-11, demonstrated that people from Aboriginal, migrant and refugee backgrounds continue to experience unacceptably high rates of race-based discrimination. Ninety seven per cent of surveyed Aborigines and nearly two-thirds of surveyed people from CALD backgrounds had experienced racism in the previous 12 months. Racism is associated with poor mental health, reduced quality of life and limited social and economic opportunities. Racism is wrong and against the law.

What will we do?

Council developed a set of coordinated organisational and community actions demonstrating our leadership in combating racism which will be delivered by June 2015.

The aim of the organisationalactions is to increase understanding across Council about race-based discrimination, its impacts and to build skills to ensure the organisation delivers fair and equitable outcomes for staff and residents. So far Council has implemented the following:

six training sessions were conducted for staff across the organisation by the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission

the Campaign logo was placed in all staff signatures

over 80 staff pledged their support to the Campaign

Council undertook a workplace diversity and anti- discrimination assessment to identify organisational strengths and areas for further improvement. An action plan was developed to guide our future actions.

The aim of the community actions is to demonstrate Council’s leadership in stamping out racism and to raise awareness about racism and its impacts. So far Council has engaged with the community in the following way:

community organisations attended a training to raise awareness about racism and its impacts

the campaign was promoted through our communication channels

the Multicultural Advisory Group members pledged their support to the Campaign

In 2014 the Council partnered with the Immigration Museum and organised a tour of the Talking Difference Studio around the municipality. It provided residents with an opportunity to express their opinion about difference, identity and racism. Over three months, the studio visited four different locations around the municipality, four community workshops were delivered to 84 people and a total of 153 responses were collected across the four locations.

In 2015 the Council developed the Behind This Smile community art project to challenge cultural stereotypes and promote cultural diversity. Find out more about this inspiring project here.